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High Court Ends Appeal Of NC's Abortion Ultrasound Law

North Carolina has lost its appeal of a case involving abortion providers having to show pregnant women an ultrasound of their fetus. The U.S. Supreme Court announced Monday it will not take up case.

The Republican-backed law required doctors to show and describe ultrasounds to pregnant women considering an abortion. 

In a unanimous decision in December, a federal appeals court ruled that violates the First Amendment. The three-judge panel wrote that the requirement forced doctors to convey an ideological message, since the point was to convince women to change their minds.

North Carolina appealed, and now, the U.S. Supreme Court announced it will not review the case. As is common with this kind of denial, the justices didn't give any reasoning. The result is that the federal appeals court ruling stands, and the North Carolina ultrasound law is unconstitutional.